• Obituaries of Notable People in the Theater Category



  • Gerald P. Arpino, 85 (1923 - 2008)

    Gerald P. Arpino

    CHICAGO -- Gerald Arpino, who co-founded the Joffrey Ballet and oversaw its move from New York to Chicago, has died. He was 85. Ballet spokeswoman Beth Silverman says Arpino died Wednesday morning in Chicago after a prolonged illness. She didn't immediately have any details. Arpino was a dancer and choreographer when he established the troupe in 1956 with its namesake, the late Robert...

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  • Milton Katselas, 74 (1933 - 2008)

    Milton  Katselas

    LOS ANGELES -- Milton Katselas, a Broadway director and acting teacher whose students included George Clooney, Gene Hackman, Michelle Pfeiffer and many other stars, has died. He was 75. Katselas died Friday of heart failure at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, said Allen Barton, executive director of Katselas' Beverly Hills Playhouse acting school. Katselas was born in Pittsburgh, where he...

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  • Edie Adams, 81 (1927 - 2008)

    Edie  Adams

    LOS ANGELES -- Actress and singer Edie Adams, the blonde beauty who won a Tony Award for bringing Daisy Mae to life on Broadway and who played the television foil to her husband, comedian Ernie Kovacs, has died. She was 81. Adams died Wednesday in a Los Angeles hospital from pneumonia and cancer, publicist Henri Bollinger said. A graduate of Juilliard School of Music, Adams hoped to...

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  • Stan Kann (2008)

    Stan  Kann

    ST. LOUIS - Stan Kann, a theater organist whose vacuum cleaner collection and gadget obsession made him a regular on the "Tonight Show," died Monday. He was 83. Kann died at a hospital from complications related to a heart procedure, according to a tribute on the Web site of the Fox Theatre, where he played as recently as Saturday. Kann studied classical organ, restored and played the...

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  • Richard Monette, 64 (1944 - 2008)

    Richard  Monette

    STRATFORD, Ontario - Richard Monette, the longest-serving artistic director of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, has died at the age of 64. Monette, died Tuesday of a blood clot in the lung in a London, Ontario hospital, the festival confirmed Wednesday. Monette served as artistic director at Stratford, the largest repertory theater in North America, from 1994 to 2007. During his...

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